Combined menu card and bill



Dec. 15, 1925.

-E. JOSEPHY COMBINED MENU CARD AND BILL Original Filed April 29, 1921 Patented Dec. l5, 1925.

, VUNITED :STA-.TES

ERWIN J'OSEPHY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

COMBINED MENU CARD AND BILL.

Original application led Apri1`29, 1921, Serial No. 465,385. yDivided and this application led March 13,

f 1923. Serial No. 624,803.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Beit known that I, ERWIN JosErriY, a citizen of the United States, and resident of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Combined Menu Cards 'and Bills, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to menu cards. having reference particularly to an improved combined menu card, order form and bill adapted for use in registering orders for service of meals in public places such 'as restaurants, lhotel dining rooms, dining cars of railway trains and various other places where meals are served to a considerable number of patrons.

The device is especially adaptedA for use in conjunction with the sheet holding device setforth, and claimed in my co-pendinrr application Serial No. 465,385 filed Aprll 29, 192], of which the present application is a divisional application.`

When ordering a meal from a waiter under systems now in vogue, a common menu card is provided for use of all patrons, and orders for meals are either orally transmitted to the waiter or written on a separate slip and passed to him for execution. Un-

der this system mistakes are frequentlyy made, disputes between patrons and waiters arise and patrons are liable to be subjected to considerable inconvenience.

My invention has for its principal object the provision of means whereby such liabilitiy of mistakes and resultant disputes are obviated.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for facilitating the process of registering and placing an order.

Still further objects of the inventionbeing the provision of means whereby patrons may verify their orders, when the bill is presented for collection by the waiter, and

' means for recording transactions between patrons and waiters whereby the manage* ment of the establishment may be constantly informed as to income and the number and variety of food items disposed of,`such data materially assisting their calculations for the purpose of maintaining a well balanced food supply and facilitating bookkeeping.

These and other objects are attained by employing individual printed sheets for use of each patron constituting respectively, a

combined menu card, order form and bill, as hereinafter fully described and specifically set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, Figure l is a face view illustrating an example of my improved menu and bill; and r Fig. 2 is asimilar view illustrating a slight modification.

ln the drawings, l indicates a rectilinear sheet of adaptable paper having across one end an integral tab 2, and across the other end a similar tab 3. These tabs are adapted for engagement beneath spring-clamping devices of the character described in my above named co-pending application, and they contain any suitable indicia adapted for use of the management of the restaurant or other place where the sheet is used as a record of transactions between patrons and waiters, the tab 2, in the example shown, having a space t for recording a waiters number, aspace 5 for recording a table number and a space 6 for recordingthe date of the transaction; and the bottom tab 3 having a f marked off space 7 wherein the total amount of the transaction may be permanently recorded.

Across the sheet l near the top thereof, is a panel 8 containing printed instructions for patrons, and beneath this panel is a column of horizontally ruled spaces 9 containing a printed list of articles of diet on sale and their prices, each space 9 registering on the left with a blank space l0, for receiving a check mark and on the right with a blank space l1 for containing notations constituting an enumeration of specific charges to be computed in the bill. The sheet is also preferably provided with a plurality of blank spaces 10, whereon may be marked extras suoli as cigars, drinks7 etc., the prices thereof being notated in the spaces 1l. On the right of the printed list of articles on sale is a. column of blank spaces 12 whereon may be indicated special directions such as the number of persons to be served, and the quality of the food and the conditions under which it is to be prepared.

In the modification illustrated by Fig. 2 of the drawings, the list of food items is divided into courses and placed on parallel panels 13; other slight variations of arrangement of the elements of my improvement adapted to meet requirements of vari- CII ons food dispensing establishments, may be employed without departing from the spirit of my invention and the scope of the appended claims.

In the use of the device7 each patron receives from the waiter one Vof the sheets, and then said patron places, by use of a marking device a suitable check marked.v as an X, in each space 10 registering with the 'food articles desired, whereupon the waiter passes the sheet to the chef for the purpose of having the order filled. H any special directions are necessary the patron notes them on the coluin-n l2, and if extras are required, they are marked in the spaces 10. Upon the completion oi the meal the waiter makes notation of the several prices in the spaces l1 and Jfoots up `the bill in the bottom space ila, and hands the sheet to the patron who can readily detect any errors of addition by referring to the printed prices on the sheet. lifter the bill is collected the sheet is passed in to the cashier who then makes a permanent notation of the total amount of the bill on the space 7, whereupon the sheet is filed away for reference.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. In a combined menu card and bill, a blank having a series of separate spaces containing` indicia pertaining to articles which may be ordered, a series of charge figures adjacent said indicia and registering in a common line therewith, a series of separate spaces each of which registers in a common line with each of the aforesaid indicia, said spaces being appropriately designated to receive an indicator marl; against such of said articles as are to be ordered, a secondary series of separate ruled spaces each of which registers in line with one of said indicia and wherein said charge figures may be arranged for totaling and an appropriately designated totaling space arranged below and vertically in alignment with said secondary series el spaces upon said blank.

2. In a combined menu card and bill, a blank provided with a series ot article in dicia, means for separating said indicia inte groups, a series of appropriately designate-:l order mark reception spaces to the left ot' and adjacent to each of said indicia, a ondary series of outlined item notation spaces to the right of and adjacent to each of said indicia, a series of appropriately designated table, servant, and time indication spaces above said indicia and an appropriately designated space adapted to receive the total charge beneath said indicia and vertically aligned with said item notation spaces.

Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York this 17th day oi' July, A. D. 1922.

ERVVIN JOSEPHY. 

